Generosity in Canada and the United States: The 2018 ... · enerosit in anaa an te nite tates Te...

fraserinstitute.org FRASER RESEARCH BULLETIN 1

F R A S E R RESEARCHBULLETIN

�� Manitoba had the highest percentage of tax filers that donated to charity among the prov-inces (23.8%) during the 2016 tax year while New Brunswick and Newfoundland & Labrador had the lowest (18.7%). Manitoba also donated the highest percentage of its aggregate income to charity among the provinces (0.76%) while Quebec donated the lowest (0.26%).

�� The general trend in recent years is that a declining percentage of Canadian tax filers are donating to charity and they are donating less as a percentage of income.

�� Nationwide, a lower percentage of tax filers donated to charity in Canada (20.4%) than in the United States (24.8%). Similarly, Canadians (at 0.53%) gave a lower percentage of their ag-gregate income to charity than did Americans (at 1.46%).

�� The percentage of tax filers donating to charity varies significantly among US states and Canadian provinces and territories. On this in-dicator, Manitoba is the only Canadian jurisdic-tion that ranks among the top 30 (ranked 23rd out of 64).

�� The percentage of aggregate income donat-ed was generally less in the Canadian provinces and territories than in the US states. There was only one US state (West Virginia) where the percentage of aggregate income donated was less than the percentage donated in Manitoba (0.76%), Canada’s highest ranked province.

�� US jurisdictions top the overall Generos-ity Index rankings. Utah places first (scoring 8.8 out of 10.0), followed by Maryland (7.5) and Georgia (6.9). Manitoba is the highest-scoring Canadian province (3.6) but ranks only 42nd overall out of 64 North American jurisdictions.

Summary

December 2018

by Milagros Palacios and Jake Fuss

Generosity in Canada and the United States: The 2018 Generosity Index



IntroductionInterest in the charitable sector heightens each year as the holiday season approaches. This sector is actively engaged in providing social services such as counselling, crisis prevention, basic necessities, and education to help vul-nerable people in need. Charities depend on the generosity of thousands of ordinary citi-zens who give privately from their own funds to enhance the quality of life in their communities and beyond.

The Fraser Institute’s annual Generosity Index measures this private monetary generosity using readily available data on the extent and depth of charitable donations, as recorded on personal income tax returns in Canada and the United States.1 As it has done in previous years, the 2018 index reveals a substantial generosity gap between the two countries.

1 While earlier editions of the Generosity Index incorporated donations of time as well as money (Francis, 1998; Clemens and Samida, 1999), the Can-ada Revenue Agency (CRA) no longer collects data on volunteer time donated to charity. For survey data on rates of volunteerism in Canada, see Statis-tics Canada, 2018a. While directly comparable data are not readily available for the United States, the Bureau of Labor Statistics has published survey data on volunteerism in the United States (United States, Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2016). In addi-tion, it should be noted that in Canada it is possible to carry charitable contributions forward for up to five years after the year they were originally made. Thus, donations reported for the 2016 tax year could include donations that were made in any of the five previous years. In the United States, however, chari-table contributions must be made before the end of the tax year to be deductible (United States Internal Revenue Service, 2018b).

The Generosity IndexThe Generosity Index measures private mon-etary generosity using two key indicators. The percentage of tax filers donating to char-ity indi cates the extent of generosity, while the per centage of aggregate personal income donated to charity indicates the depth of char-itable giving.2 Though not used to calculate the Generosity Index scores, the average dol-lar value of chari table donations given in a year provides additional information on the level of private generosity in each juris diction.3

The jurisdictions included in the index are Canada’s 10 provinces and 3 territories, the 50 US states, and the District of Columbia. The data used are from the 2016 tax year—the most recent year for which comparable data are available for both Canada and the United States. The data collected for the Generosity Index show stark differences in charitable giv-ing among the Canadian provinces and territo-

2 Aggregate income is the sum of the total income earned by every individual in each jurisdiction con-sidered for the index. Currently, more than 80,000 charities are registered with the CRA. This figure and the data used for the Generosity Index only include organizations formally registered with the CRA or those classified as 501(c)(3) organizations with the US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) that are able to issue tax receipts and accept grants and donations from philanthropic foundations (Canada Revenue Agency, 2018b). Canada’s non-profit sec-tor also includes several thousand organizations that are exempt from paying income tax, but may not issue tax-deductible receipts to donors. The US non-profit sector also includes 501(c)(4) social and welfare organizations that are not eligible for tax-receiptable contributions.

3 The average dollar value of donations is excluded from the Generosity Index because it is a poor esti-mate of individual generosity as it favours relatively wealthy jurisdictions over relatively poor ones.



ries, as well as between Canada and the United States.

Charitable giving in Canada

Table 1 presents data for the Canadian prov-inces and territories. Manitoba had the highest percentage of tax filers who donated to charity (23.8%) among the provinces. Prince Edward Island ranked in second place with 22.0%. New Brunswick and Newfoundland & Labrador are tied as the provinces with the lowest percent-age of tax filers donating to charity (18.7%), followed by Quebec (19.1%). In the territories, the percentage of tax filers who donated to charity ranges from 7.6% in Nunavut to 17.4% in the Yukon.

At 0.76%, Manitobans donated the highest per-centage of their aggregate income to charity. Residents of British Columbia were next, donat-ing 0.65% of their aggregate income, followed closely by residents of Alberta and Ontario (0.60%). Quebecers rank last among the prov-inces; they donated 0.26% of aggregate income to charity—a little more than one-third the pro-portion that Manitobans donated.

Though not used to calculate the Generosity Index, data on average charitable donations are also provided for interest (see table 1). Among all the provinces and territories, the highest yearly average dollar value of charitable dona-tions was in Alberta ($2,334), followed by British Columbia ($2,175), and Manitoba ($1,943). As was

Table 1: Canadian Results and Rankings for the 2016 Tax Year

Province/ Territory

Percentage of tax filers donating to charity

Percentage of aggregate income donated to charity

Average annual charitable donation

% Rank (out of 13)

% Rank (out of 13)

Amount (in dollars)

Rank (out of 13)

British Columbia 19.4 6 0.65 2 2,175 2

Alberta 21.0 5 0.60 3 2,334 1

Saskatchewan 21.5 3 0.57 5 1,821 5

Manitoba 23.8 1 0.76 1 1,943 3

Ontario 21.5 3 0.60 3 1,868 4

Quebec 19.1 8 0.26 11 776 13

New Brunswick 18.7 9 0.48 7 1,408 9

Nova Scotia 19.3 7 0.47 8 1,408 10

Prince Edward Island 22.0 2 0.53 6 1,312 11

Newfoundland & Labrador 18.7 9 0.32 9 1,073 12

Yukon 17.4 11 0.29 10 1,485 8

Northwest Territories 13.2 12 0.21 12 1,591 7

Nunavut 7.6 13 0.17 13 1,805 6

Sources: CRA (2018a); Statistics Canada (2018b); calculations by authors.



the case last year, Quebec ranked last among the provinces and territories with an average yearly value of charitable donations of $776—less than half the national average of $1,682.

Canadian giving trends from 2006 to 2016

Table 2 presents the extent and depth of chari-table giving by Canadian province and territory in 2006, 2011, and 2016, as well as the change in generosity from 2006 to 2016. What is most striking about these trends is that the extent of charitable giving fell in every Canadian juris-diction. All of the provinces and territories saw a drop in the percentage of tax filers donat-ing to charity. The provinces where the drops were most pronounced are Prince Edward

Island (decreasing by 22.7%) and Newfoundland & Labrador (decreasing by 19.8%). Among the provinces and territories, Yukon saw the largest drop in the extent of giving (at 29.5%).

At the same time, only Nunavut (10.1%) record-ed an increase in the percentage of aggregate income donated to charity. All other Canadian jurisdictions saw a decline in the depth of char-itable giving. The provinces with the largest decrease were Ontario (37.9%), Newfoundland & Labrador (37.2%), and Saskatchewan (34.9%). The largest decline among Canadian jurisdic-tions was in the Yukon (50.5%).

Figures 1 and 2 display national annual chari-table giving trends between 2006 and 2016. The percentage of Canadian tax filers donating to charity over the period has fallen from 24.6%

Table 2: Change in Canadian Generosity by Province, 2006 to 2016

Province/ Territory

Percentage of tax filers donating to charity (%)

Percentage of aggregate income donated to charity (%)

2006 2011 2016 % change 2006 to 2016

2006 2011 2016 % change 2006 to 2016

British Columbia 22.9 21.1 19.4 -15.0 0.80 0.75 0.65 -19.6

Alberta 24.7 23.4 21.0 -14.8 0.88 0.93 0.60 -31.5

Saskatchewan 25.4 24.4 21.5 -15.5 0.87 0.70 0.57 -34.9

Manitoba 27.4 25.4 23.8 -13.2 1.16 0.87 0.76 -34.0

Ontario 26.7 23.6 21.5 -19.6 0.97 0.75 0.60 -37.9

Quebec 22.4 20.9 19.1 -14.6 0.33 0.29 0.26 -21.2

New Brunswick 22.2 20.4 18.7 -15.5 0.69 0.56 0.48 -30.4

Nova Scotia 23.6 21.8 19.3 -18.1 0.71 0.53 0.47 -33.9

Prince Edward Island 28.5 24.5 22.0 -22.7 0.67 0.62 0.53 -20.7

Newfoundland & Labrador 23.3 20.6 18.7 -19.8 0.51 0.43 0.32 -37.2

Yukon 24.7 20.0 17.4 -29.5 0.59 0.31 0.29 -50.5

Northwest Territories 15.3 15.5 13.2 -14.0 0.24 0.26 0.21 -9.9

Nunavut 10.3 9.5 7.6 -26.9 0.15 0.22 0.17 10.1

Sources: CRA (2008, 2013, and 2018a); Statistics Canada (2018b); calculations by authors.



Figure 2: Percentage of aggregate income donated to charity in Canada, 2006 to 2016

Figure 1: Percentage of tax filers donating to charity in Canada, 2006 to 2016

Source: CRA (2008-2018a); calculations by authors.

Source: CRA (2008-2018a); Statistics Canada (2018b); calculations by authors.

24.6 23.8 23.622.5 22.9 22.4 21.8 21.3 20.8 20.5 20.4

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

0.78 0.75

0.68

0.63

0.66 0.67

0.61 0.60 0.60 0.59

0.53

0.0

0.1

0.2

0.3

0.4

0.5

0.6

0.7

0.8

0.9

2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016



in 2006 to 20.4% in 2016 (figure 1). That is a drop of more than four percentage points over the period. This result is in line with the data shown in table 2, where the extent of giving fell in every jurisdiction. In terms of the national trend in the depth of charitable giving, figure 2 shows that the percentage of aggregate income donated to charity decreased from 0.78% in 2006 to 0.53% in 2016. All subnational Cana-dian jurisdictions except for Nunavut saw their depth of giving drop over this period.

Comparing Canada and the United States The most pronounced differences exist when Canadian and American generosity is com-pared. In the United States, the extent of gen-erosity is 4.4 percentage points higher: 24.8% of US tax filers donate to charity (US IRS, 2018a) compared to 20.4% of Canadians (CRA, 2018a).

The gap between these two countries wid-ens when considering the depth of generosity. In 2016, Americans gave 1.46% of their aggre-gate income to charity (US IRS, 2018a; Bureau of Economic Analysis, 2018). This rate of giving is over two-and-a-half times more than that shown by Canadians, who gave 0.53% of aggre-gate income to charity in 2016 (CRA, 2018a).4 Total donations were US$235.7 billion in the US in 2016 and CA$9.1 billion in Canada. If Cana-dians had given the same percentage of their aggregate income to charity as Americans had,

4 These numbers likely understate American charita-ble donations due to differences in the Canadian and US tax systems. In the US, tax filers may file either itemized or non-itemized returns, but only those fil-ing itemized tax returns can claim charitable dona-tions. Thus, a whole group of US tax filers may donate to registered charities but are unable to claim those donations. In the 2016 tax year, 30.3% of American tax filers itemized deductions (US IRS, 2018a).

there would have been $16.1 billion more in Canadian donations to charities (for a potential total of $25.2 billion).

Subnational differences The generosity gap varies significantly among subnational jurisdictions.5 Table 3 ranks all states, provinces, and territories in North America on both measures included in the Generosity Index (the percentage of tax fil-ers donating to charity and the percentage of aggregate income donated to charity).

As was the case last year, Maryland has the high-est percentage of tax filers who donated to charity (38.7%). New Jersey is second with 35.3% of tax filers donating, followed closely by Con-necticut (34.6%). Only Manitoba, Canada’s high-est ranked province on this measure, is among the top 30 (ranked 23rd out of 64) with 23.8% of its tax filers donating to charity. Prince Edward Island, with 22.0% of its tax filers donating, was Canada’s second highest ranked jurisdiction on this measure (ranked 32nd out of 64).

In comparing the depth of charitable giv-ing, Canadian provinces and territories do far worse than US jurisdictions. In Utah, 3.18% of aggregate income was donated to charity—by far the highest percentage among US states

5 It is beyond the scope of this report to determine why there are differences in charitable giving among subnational jurisdictions. However, Lammam and Gabler (2012) reviewed the literature on the deter-minants of charitable giving at the jurisdictional level and note several possible drivers including income, the after-tax cost of donating, scope of gov-ernment, the age of the population, levels of educa-tion, religious affiliation, and volunteerism. Francis and Clemens (1999) argue that private generosity is sensitive to disposable income and conclude that a more economic growth oriented regime would encourage charitable giving.



State/ Province/ Territory


Rank (out of

64)

Percentage of aggregate

income donated to charity (%)

Rank (out of

64)

Average annual charitable

donation (local currency – $)

Rank (out of

64)

Alabama 23.0 29 1.86 4 7,543 10

Alaska 16.4 58 0.79 50 5,730 29

Arizona 24.8 19 1.32 30 5,073 38

Arkansas 18.4 53 2.07 3 10,935 2

California 28.9 11 1.62 12 7,107 14

Colorado 26.9 14 1.47 18 5,986 25

Connecticut 34.6 3 1.33 29 5,467 32

Delaware 26.8 15 1.21 36 4,565 46

District of Columbia 33.1 4 1.72 7 8,039 8

Florida 19.2 46 1.37 23 7,058 15

Georgia 28.5 12 2.31 2 8,045 7

Hawaii 23.8 23 0.92 46 4,112 49

Idaho 23.4 27 1.78 5 6,983 17

Illinois 26.2 16 1.37 23 5,792 28

Indiana 18.4 53 1.21 36 6,113 22

Iowa 24.3 22 1.17 39 4,818 43

Kansas 21.2 38 1.41 21 6,942 18

Kentucky 21.4 35 1.26 34 5,392 33

Louisiana 19.0 48 1.25 35 6,646 19

Maine 20.8 40 0.83 49 3,643 50

Maryland 38.7 1 1.70 8 5,248 35

Massachusetts 30.7 7 1.37 23 5,813 27

Michigan 22.6 30 1.29 33 5,367 34

Minnesota 29.6 8 1.35 27 4,864 42

Mississippi 20.4 42 1.67 10 7,135 13

Missouri 21.4 35 1.45 19 6,469 20

Montana 22.4 31 1.37 23 5,609 30

Nebraska 23.3 28 1.31 31 5,946 26

Nevada 21.3 37 1.35 27 6,049 24

New Hampshire 24.4 21 1.06 43 4,731 44

New Jersey 35.3 2 1.20 38 4,326 48

New Mexico 17.5 55 1.00 44 5,121 37

New York 29.0 10 1.62 12 7,033 16

North Carolina 25.0 18 1.59 14 6,105 23

North Dakota 13.7 61 0.92 46 7,382 11

Table 3: Results and Ranks for Charitable Contributions in Canada and the US, 2016 Tax Year





Rank (out of

64)

Percentage of aggregate

income donated to charity (%)

Rank (out of

64)

Average annual charitable

donation (local currency – $)

Rank (out of

64)

Ohio 20.6 41 1.10 42 5,039 40

Oklahoma 18.9 49 1.48 17 7,975 9

Oregon 29.3 9 1.45 19 4,935 41

Pennsylvania 23.5 26 1.12 41 5,042 39

Rhode Island 27.4 13 0.91 48 3,354 51

South Carolina 23.8 23 1.69 9 6,444 21

South Dakota 14.0 60 1.39 22 10,020 4

Tennessee 16.9 57 1.49 16 8,644 5

Texas 18.8 50 1.30 32 7,334 12

Utah 31.2 5 3.18 1 10,165 3

Vermont 20.1 43 0.96 45 4,609 45

Virginia 31.0 6 1.50 15 5,539 31

Washington 24.5 20 1.77 6 8,381 6

West Virginia 12.4 63 0.74 52 5,244 36

Wisconsin 25.2 17 1.15 40 4,391 47

Wyoming 15.5 59 1.67 10 12,991 1

British Columbia 19.4 44 0.65 53 2,175 53

Alberta 21.0 39 0.60 54 2,334 52

Saskatchewan 21.5 33 0.57 56 1,821 56

Manitoba 23.8 23 0.76 51 1,943 54

Ontario 21.5 33 0.60 54 1,868 55

Quebec 19.1 47 0.26 62 776 64

New Brunswick 18.7 51 0.48 58 1,408 60

Nova Scotia 19.3 45 0.47 59 1,408 61

Prince Edward Island 22.0 32 0.53 57 1,312 62

Newfoundland & Labrador 18.7 51 0.32 60 1,073 63

Yukon 17.4 56 0.29 61 1,485 59

Northwest Territories 13.2 62 0.21 63 1,591 58

Nunavut 7.6 64 0.17 64 1,805 57

Canada 20.4 0.53 1,682

United States 24.8 1.46 6,349

Sources: CRA (2018a); Statistics Canada (2018b); United States, Bureau of Economic Analysis (2018); United States, Internal Revenue Ser-vice (2018a); calculations by authors.

Table 3: Results and Ranks for Charitable Contributions in Canada and the US, 2016 Tax Year (continued)



and Canadian provinces. Georgia is second on this measure with 2.31% of aggregate income donated to charity. By contrast, the percent-age of aggregate income donated to charity in Manitoba, Canada’s highest ranked province on this measure, was just 0.76%—under a quarter of the amount donated in Utah. West Virginia was the only US state where the percentage of aggregate income donated was less than the percentage of aggregate income donated in Manitoba.

The average US donation was US$6,349 per year—more than

three-and-a-half times the average Canadian donation

of CA$1,682 a year.

Though not included in the calculations of the Generosity Index, Canada makes its poor-est showing in the average value of charita-ble donations in local currency. The average US donation was US$6,349 per year (US IRS, 2018a)—more than three-and-a-half times the average Canadian donation of CA$1,682 a year (CRA, 2018a). Wyoming, the top-ranked juris-diction on this measure, recorded an average annual charitable donation of US$12,991—more than five-and-a-half times the average annual donation of CA$2,334 in Alberta, Canada’s top-performing province on this measure. Even in Rhode Island, the lowest-ranked US state, the average donation (US$3,354) is $1,020 more than the average donation in Alberta. The disparity is more pronounced when currency differences are accounted for in the 2016 tax year.6

6 In 2016, US$1.00 was worth an average CA$1.326 at the spot rate (Statistics Canada, 2018b).

The 2018 Generosity Index

Table 4 displays the overall results of the 2018 Generosity Index for the 64 jurisdictions. Over-all scores (out of 10) and ranks (out of 64) are presented for each indicator (the extent and depth of charitable giving).

As in previous years, the top-ranked jurisdic-tion is Utah, with an overall index score of 8.8 out of 10.0. Maryland ranks second with an overall score of 7.5, and Georgia is third with an overall score of 6.9. Canada’s highest ranked province, Manitoba, is 42nd overall, scoring 3.6 on the 2018 Generosity Index. Quebec and Newfoundland & Labrador rank last among Canadian provinces, placing 59th overall with a score of 2.0. The Northwest Territories and Nunavut are at the bottom of the list, with scores of 1.0 and 0.0 out of 10.0, respectively.

Conclusion

The Generosity Index uses readily available data to measure private monetary generos-ity in Canada and the United States. By mea-suring both the percentage of tax filers who donate to charity and the percentage of aggre-gate income donated to charity in each juris-diction, the Generosity Index recognizes the magnitude of charitable donations eligible for income tax deduction. The results indicate that, in recent years, a smaller proportion of Cana-dians are generally giving to charity and the amount given makes up an increasingly smaller proportion of aggregate income. Most notably, however, the index shows that private mone-tary generosity in Canada is considerably lower than in the United States. This generosity gap undoubtedly limits the ability of Canadian char-ities to improve the quality of life in their com-munities and beyond.




Generosity Index Indicator 1: Percentage of tax filers donating

to charity

Indicator 2: Percentage of aggregate income

donated to charity

Score (out of

10)

Rank (out of

64)

% Score (out of

10)

Rank (out of

64)

% Score (out of

10)

Rank (out of

64)

Utah 8.8 1 31.2 7.6 5 3.2 10.0 1

Maryland 7.5 2 38.7 10.0 1 1.7 5.1 8

Georgia 6.9 3 28.5 6.7 12 2.3 7.1 2

District of Columbia 6.7 4 33.1 8.2 4 1.7 5.1 7

Connecticut 6.3 5 34.6 8.7 3 1.3 3.9 29

New Jersey 6.2 6 35.3 8.9 2 1.2 3.4 38

Virginia 6.0 7 31.0 7.5 6 1.5 4.4 15

New York 5.8 8 29.0 6.9 10 1.6 4.8 12

California 5.8 8 28.9 6.8 11 1.6 4.8 12

Massachusetts 5.7 10 30.7 7.4 7 1.4 4.0 23

Oregon 5.6 11 29.3 7.0 9 1.5 4.3 19

Minnesota 5.5 12 29.6 7.1 8 1.4 3.9 27

Washington 5.4 13 24.5 5.4 20 1.8 5.3 6

Alabama 5.3 14 23.0 5.0 29 1.9 5.6 4

Colorado 5.3 14 26.9 6.2 14 1.5 4.3 18

North Carolina 5.2 16 25.0 5.6 18 1.6 4.7 14

Idaho 5.2 16 23.4 5.1 27 1.8 5.3 5

South Carolina 5.1 18 23.8 5.2 23 1.7 5.0 9

Illinois 5.0 19 26.2 6.0 16 1.4 4.0 23

Arkansas 4.9 20 18.4 3.5 53 2.1 6.3 3

Delaware 4.8 21 26.8 6.2 15 1.2 3.5 36

Arizona 4.7 22 24.8 5.5 19 1.3 3.8 30

Wisconsin 4.5 23 25.2 5.7 17 1.2 3.3 40

Mississippi 4.5 23 20.4 4.1 42 1.7 5.0 10

Rhode Island 4.4 25 27.4 6.4 13 0.9 2.5 48

Nebraska 4.4 25 23.3 5.0 28 1.3 3.8 31

Montana 4.4 25 22.4 4.8 31 1.4 4.0 23

Iowa 4.3 28 24.3 5.4 22 1.2 3.3 39

Michigan 4.3 28 22.6 4.8 30 1.3 3.7 33

Missouri 4.3 28 21.4 4.4 35 1.5 4.3 19

Kansas 4.2 31 21.2 4.4 38 1.4 4.1 21

New Hampshire 4.2 31 24.4 5.4 21 1.1 3.0 43

Nevada 4.2 31 21.3 4.4 37 1.4 3.9 27

Pennsylvania 4.1 34 23.5 5.1 26 1.1 3.2 41

Oklahoma 4.0 35 18.9 3.6 49 1.5 4.4 17

Kentucky 4.0 35 21.4 4.4 35 1.3 3.6 34

Florida 3.9 37 19.2 3.7 46 1.4 4.0 23

Table 4: 2018 Generosity Index Scores for Canada and the US




Generosity Index Indicator 1: Percentage of tax filers donating

to charity

Indicator 2: Percentage of aggregate income

donated to charity

Score (out of

10)

Rank (out of

64)

% Score (out of

10)

Rank (out of

64)

% Score (out of

10)

Rank (out of

64)

Hawaii 3.9 37 23.8 5.2 23 0.9 2.5 46

Wyoming 3.8 39 15.5 2.5 59 1.7 5.0 10

Texas 3.7 40 18.8 3.6 50 1.3 3.8 32

Tennessee 3.7 40 16.9 3.0 57 1.5 4.4 16

Ohio 3.6 42 20.6 4.2 41 1.1 3.1 42

Louisiana 3.6 42 19.0 3.7 48 1.3 3.6 35

Manitoba 3.6 42 23.8 5.2 23 0.8 2.0 51

Indiana 3.5 45 18.4 3.5 53 1.2 3.5 36

Vermont 3.3 46 20.1 4.0 43 1.0 2.6 45

Maine 3.2 47 20.8 4.2 40 0.8 2.2 49

South Dakota 3.1 48 14.0 2.1 60 1.4 4.1 22

New Mexico 3.0 49 17.5 3.2 55 1.0 2.8 44

Prince Edward Island 2.9 50 22.0 4.6 32 0.5 1.2 57

Saskatchewan 2.9 50 21.5 4.5 33 0.6 1.3 56

Alberta 2.9 50 21.0 4.3 39 0.6 1.4 54

Ontario 2.9 50 21.5 4.5 33 0.6 1.4 54

British Columbia 2.7 54 19.4 3.8 44 0.7 1.6 53

Alaska 2.4 55 16.4 2.8 58 0.8 2.1 50

Nova Scotia 2.4 55 19.3 3.8 45 0.5 1.0 59

New Brunswick 2.3 57 18.7 3.6 51 0.5 1.0 58

North Dakota 2.2 58 13.7 2.0 61 0.9 2.5 46

Newfoundland & Labrador 2.0 59 18.7 3.6 51 0.3 0.5 60

Quebec 2.0 59 19.1 3.7 47 0.3 0.3 62

Yukon 1.8 61 17.4 3.2 56 0.3 0.4 61

West Virginia 1.7 62 12.4 1.5 63 0.7 1.9 52

Northwest Territories 1.0 63 13.2 1.8 62 0.2 0.1 63

Nunavut 0.0 64 7.6 0.0 64 0.2 0.0 64

Sources: CRA (2018a); Statistics Canada (2018b); United States, Bureau of Economic Analysis (2018); United States, Internal Revenue Ser-vice (2018a); calculations by authors.

* For each indicator, cases may arise where different jurisdictions receive the same score even though their underlying data is different. This occurs because the scores are rounded to one decimal place.

* Due to rounding, the Generosity Index scores may not equal the average of the two indicator scores as they appear in this table. Also, the rankings for indicators 1 and 2 are based on the indicators' actual values not scores, whereas the rankings for the Generosity Index are based on the average of their standardized scores.

Table 4: 2018 Generosity Index Scores for Canada and the US



References

Canada Revenue Agency [CRA] (2008). Final Statistics—Sample Data 2008 Edition (2006 tax year). Web Tables. Government of Canada, Canada Revenue Agency. <http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/gncy/stts/gb06/pst/fnl/menu-eng.html>, as of November 5, 2018.

Canada Revenue Agency [CRA] (2009). Final Statistics—Sample Data 2009 Edition (2007 tax year). Web Tables. Government of Canada, Canada Revenue Agency. <http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/gncy/stts/gb07/pst/fnl/menu-eng.html>, as of November 5, 2018.

Canada Revenue Agency [CRA] (2010). Final Statistics—Sample Data 2010 Edition (2008 tax year). Web Tables. Government of Canada, Canada Revenue Agency. <http://www.cra-arc. gc.ca/gncy/stts/gb08/pst/fnl/menu-eng.html>, as of November 5, 2018.

Canada Revenue Agency [CRA] (2011). T1 Final Statistics 2011 Edition ( for the 2009 tax year). Web Tables. Government of Canada, Canada Revenue Agency. <http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/gncy/ stts/gb09/pst/fnl/menu-eng.html>, as of November 5, 2018.

Canada Revenue Agency [CRA] (2012). T1 Final Sta tistics 2012 Edition ( for the 2010 tax year). Web Tables. Government of Canada, Canada Revenue Agency. <https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/programs/about-cana-da-revenue-agency-cra/income-statistics-gst-hst-statistics/t1-final-statistics-2012-edi-tion-2010-tax-year.html>, as of Nov. 5, 2018.

Canada Revenue Agency [CRA] (2013). T1 Final Statistics 2013 Edition ( for the 2011 tax year). Web Tables. Government of Canada, Canada Revenue Agency. <https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/programs/about-cana-da-revenue-agency-cra/income-statistics-gst-hst-statistics/t1-final-statistics-2013-edi-tion-2011-tax-year.html>, as of Nov. 5, 2018.

Canada Revenue Agency [CRA] (2014). T1 Final Statistics 2014 Edition ( for the 2012 tax year). Web Tables. Government of Canada, Canada Revenue Agency. <https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/programs/about-cana-da-revenue-agency-cra/income-statistics-gst-hst-statistics/t1-final-statistics-2014-edi-tion-2012-tax-year.html>, as of November5, 2018.

Canada Revenue Agency [CRA] (2015). T1 Final Statistics 2015 Edition ( for the 2013 tax year). Web Tables. Government of Canada, Canada Revenue Agency. <https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/programs/about-cana-da-revenue-agency-cra/income-statistics-gst-hst-statistics/t1-final-statistics-2015-edi-tion-2013-tax-year.html>, as of November 5, 2018.

Canada Revenue Agency [CRA] (2016). T1 Final Statistics 2016 Edition ( for the 2014 tax year). Web Tables. Government of Canada, Canada Revenue Agency. <https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/programs/about-cana-da-revenue-agency-cra/income-statistics-gst-hst-statistics/final-statistics-2016-edi-tion-2014-tax-year.html>, as of November 5, 2018.

Canada Revenue Agency [CRA] (2017). T1 Final Statistics 2017 Edition ( for the 2015 tax year). Web Tables. Government of Canada, Canada Revenue Agency. <https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/programs/about-cana-da-revenue-agency-cra/income-statistics-gst-hst-statistics/t1-final-statistics/final-statistics-2017-edition-2015-tax-year.html>, as of November 5, 2018.

Canada Revenue Agency [CRA] (2018a). T1 Preliminary Statistics 2018 edition ( for the 2016 tax year). Web Tables. Government of Cana-da, Canada Revenue Agency. <https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/programs/about-canada-revenue-agency-cra/in-

http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/gncy/stts/gb05/pst/fnl/menu-eng.html








come-statistics-gst-hst-statistics/t1-prelim-inary-statistics-2018-edition-2016-tax-year.html#h7>, as of November 5, 2018.

Canada Revenue Agency [CRA] (2018b). Charities Program Update – 2015. Government of Canada, Canada Revenue Agency. <https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/ser-vices/charities-giving/charities/about-charities-directorate/charities-program-up-date-2015.html>, as of November 5, 2018.

Clemens, Jason, and Dexter Samida (1999). The 1999 Private Charitable Generosity Index. Pub-lic Policy Sources No. 34. Fraser Institute. <https://www.fraserinstitute.org/sites/de-fault/files/GenerosityIndex1999.pdf>, as of November 5, 2018.

Francis, Johanna (1998). Ranking Private Gener-osity. Fraser Forum (November): 18-20, 32.

Francis, Johanna, and Jason Clemens (1999). Charitable Donations and Tax Incentives. Fraser Forum (June).

Lammam, Charles, and Nachum Gabler (2012). Determinants of Charitable Giving: a Review of the Literature. Fraser Forum (March/April): 12–15. <https://www.fraserinstitute.org/sites/default/files/fraserforum-march-april-2012-rev.pdf>, as of November 5, 2018.

Statistics Canada (2018a).Table 4510001201: Volunteer rate and average annual volunteer hours, by age group. Statistics Canada. <https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/cv.action?pid=4510001201#timeframe>, as of November 5, 2018.

Statistics Canada (2018b).Table 3610022601: Household sector, selected indicators, provincial and territorial. Statistics Canada. <https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/

tv.action?pid=3610022601>, as of Novem ber 5, 2018.

Statistics Canada (2018c). Table 10-10-0009-01: Archived Foreign Exchange Rates in Canadian Dollars, Bank of Canada, Monthly. Statistics Canada. <https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/cv.action?pid=1010000901>, as of No-vember 5, 2018.

United States, Bureau of Economic Analysis [BEA] (2018). Regional Data. SA5N Personal income by major component and earnings by NAICS indus try 1/. Generated web table (No-vember 5, 2018). Government of the United States.

United States, Bureau of Labor Statistics [BEA] (2016). Volunteering in the United States. Bu-reau of Labor Statis tics. <http://www.bls.gov/news.release/volun.toc.htm>, as of No-vember 5, 2018.

United States, Internal Revenue Service [IRS] (2018a). SOI Tax Stats – Historic Table 2. Historical Table 2: State Data Tax Year 2016. Gov-ernment of the United States. <https://www.irs.gov/statistics/soi-tax-stats-historic-ta-ble-2>, as of November 5, 2018.

United States, Internal Revenue Service [IRS] (2018b). Charitable Contribution Deductions. Government of the United States. <https://www.irs.gov/charities-non-profits/charita-ble-organizations/charitable-contribution-deductions>, as of November 5, 2018.

http://www.bls.gov/news.release/volun.toc.htm

http://www.bls.gov/news.release/volun.toc.htm

https://www.irs.gov/charities-non-profits/charitable-organizations/charitable-contribution-deductions






Copyright © 2018 by the Fraser Institute. All rights re-served. Without written permission, only brief passag-es may be quoted in critical articles and reviews.

ISSN 2291-8620

Media queries: call 604.714.4582 or e-mail: [email protected]

Support the Institute: call 1.800.665.3558, ext. 586 or e-mail: [email protected]

Visit our website: www.fraserinstitute.org

Milagros Palacios is the Associate Director of the Addington Centre for Measurement at the Fraser Institute. She holds a BSc in Indus trial Engineering from the Pon tifical Catholic University of Peru and an MSc in Economics from the University of Concepción, Chile. She has published or copublished over 100 research studies and over 80 commentaries on a wide range of public policy issues.

AcknowledgmentsThe authors would like to acknowledge the original con tributions of Johanna Francis and Jason Clemens in the first edition of the Generosity Index, as well as Dexter Samida, Todd Gabel, Sylvia LeRoy, Niels Veldhuis, Feixue Ren, Charles Lammam, Sazid Hasan, and Hugh MacIntyre for their contributions in subsequent years. The authors take full responsibility for any remain ing errors or omissions. As the researchers have worked independently, the views and conclusions expressed in this paper do not necessar-ily reflect those of the Board of Directors of the Fraser Institute, the staff, or supporters.

Jake Fuss is a Policy Analyst at the Fraser Institute. He holds a Bachelor of Commerce and a Master’s Degree in Public Policy from the University of Calgary. Mr. Fuss has written commentaries appearing in major Canadian newspapers including the Financial Post and the Winnipeg Sun. His research covers a wide range of policy issues including government spending, debt, taxation, and charitable giving.

Generosity in Canada and the United States: The 2018 ... · enerosit in anaa an te nite tates Te...

Documents

Transcript of Generosity in Canada and the United States: The 2018 ... · enerosit in anaa an te nite tates Te...